Thursday, September 09, 2010

Duo organic tofus salad

Just read an interesting US article on internet about chefs' secrets, one of them is that many chefs are picky eaters, tofu usually is on their dislike list.

I've known quite a few westerners who don't eat tofu even they're healthy eaters themselves.

Personal taste... or have they ever had a chance to taste realfresh tofu? They can't be found in supermarkets.

In Hongkong, tofu is made daily, so no need for preservatives. The taste is pure and light; it may not be wrong to say that it doesn't have taste, that also mean, you shouldn't feel like eating soybean or peas neither.

Unfortunately, I could only buy tofu from supermarkets in overseas. Some of their taste is horrifying, probably due to adding too much preservative or additives, or the manufacturers don't bother to select good soybean? Tofus is almost entirely made out of soy and water, so the choice of ingredient is absolutely essential. It makes the taste whole-world different!

So do look for any store that makes fresh tofu in your area (or ask your Japanese/ Chinese neighbors :):) If you live in Barcelona, lucky you! Tofu Catalan sells organic preservative-free tofu. Their address is calle de Aribau 119. Go and discover the treasure!

Tofu comes in various textures, from silky to chewy, make use of this feature adding character to your dish. In my country we love to pair tofu with strongly flavored ingredients, like fried garlic, salty pork or anchovy. In my limited knowledge I know Japanese people normally just add a few green onion and a bit of soy sauce, solely pursuit the enjoyment of simplicity!

Recipe of duo organic tofus salad

(for 2 servings)

200g soft white tofu, fresh/organic, cut into small cubes

100g fried organic tofu puff, cut into stripes

100g smoke salmon, cut into small pieces

2 - 3 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced

1/4 onion, thinly sliced

a big handful of arugula

extra olive oil

sea salt

Add some oil in a very small pan, fry the garlic over medium-low heat, it only takes a minute or 2, don't burn the garlic.

It's so nice to read a new post by you again! Welcome back. I happened to read that same article too yesterday, it was very interesting. Hmm, I wonder what that tofu tastes like. My grandma sometimes buy tofu directly from the factory for a cheap price and it is really fresh, but I wonder if they put preservatives in that too.

Hi D T Machnet, good to know you get a reliable source for good tofu. When i lived in US, the manufactured tofu from supermarket was decent enough. But now the ones we got in Barcelona they have a bitter after-taste. I guess tofu just like fresh cheese (think of fresh ricotta...), the fresher the better.And thanks for your sweet comment :D

Hello Esther, maybe go taste some when your grandma brings you some tofu :) :) you may hook on it, who knows :D I don't think preservatives always will ruin the authenic taste (or all depends...), but it is harmful stuff anyway, better to avoid it if we can. btw, thanks for your heart-warming greeting :D

Have you tried making your own? It's a bit of work (soaking the soybeans, grinding them up, boiling them, straining them to remove the okara, bringing the soy milk up to a boil again and adding the coagulant, then pressing in cheese-cloth). It's worth it, though, and quite tasty!

Hey Dav M, you're definitely an adventerous cook! I luuuv home-made tofu (back then my mom made it for living; we had a commercial tofu machine at home). Now since you mentioned it, I surely will think about DIY someday :D